Many of the Irish runners at Cheltenham next week will be sporting saddles and bridles made by Berney's of Kilcullen
WHEN THE Irish horses line up at Cheltenham next Tuesday, with riders, trainers and owners hoping (along with thousands of punters) to make it to the winner's enclosure, the science of racing edges over into the romance of possibility. So many things are involved in turning a racehorse into a legend. As well as the owner, the trainer and the jockey, there is the stud farm that bred the horse, the vet that kept it healthy, the stable lad who made sure it was happy, the person who mixed the feed, and then there is the tack.
When it comes to Irish racehorses, chances are that the ones flying over the turf of Cheltenham will have been trained in a Berney's saddle. In an era of brand-name marketing and global fashion trends, Berney's is a by-word in the horse industry. "There was once a saddler in every town in Ireland," says Tom Berney, "and every village would have had its own blacksmith." He's talking, of course, about an Ireland long gone, but back in 1880, when his great-great-grandfather established Berney's in Kilcullen, near the Curragh, they were less out-of-the-ordinary. What makes the company special is that they continue to make saddles by hand, using the same tools, the same workbenches, the same knowledge and craftsmanship that characterised their work from the outset.
"It takes 24 hours to make a general purpose saddle from start to finish," Berney tells me. "And the nature of the materials means you can't use machines. You have to feel the hides, how they move and stretch. A machine can't do that." It's not that Berney's is opposed to technology, it's just that the craftsmen know where and when it's useful.
In the workshop, there are saddles in various stages of completion. While the flat racing saddle is small, and light as a handkerchief, the National Hunt saddles, which will be used at Cheltenham, are more structured. "There are 2,000 horses in training on the Curragh," Berney says, "and we make 1,200 training saddles a year, so a lot of those horses will be using ours." Hanging from hooks are bridles in for repair, their tags reading like a Who's Who of Irish racing. A parade blanket sits ready to go, the stitching announcing it is for Silver Birch, last year's Grand National winner.
"We're proud of the tradition," says Berney. "But at the same time it has to work. Working with the riders and competitors is the best way to stay on top of our game. If it works for a world champion, it'll work for others." And that is how Berney's saddles have been refined over the years. "People will come in, a dressage champion, for example, and say 'I love this saddle, but could you make it a bit flatter, or a bit deeper?' It takes about two years to get a new pattern right before we start to sell it."
Berney is padding a saddle with sheep's wool, at a bench beside his father, also named Thomas. This is Berney senior's 50th year here. "There aren't too many family businesses like this left. It's a bit worrying, isn't it?" he muses, before adding that "nothing's going to happen on my watch."
A general purpose saddle costs €750, less than many of today's "must-have" handbags, and it will last a lifetime. So will the tradition continue? "Horses are in your blood," says Berney, reminding me of racing families, such as the Walshes and Carberrys, where skill as well as talent are passed through generations.
Tom's brother, Jim, runs a branch of Berney's in Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, and Berney's children are becoming more involved. Two of his daughters work in the shop during school holidays. "I'm encouraging them," he says, "but at the end of the day it's up to them. I'm hoping one of them will have 'it'."
Berney's doesn't advertise, but nonetheless the company sends at least one saddle a day to the US, and more to other destinations around the world. "The horse world is very word-of-mouth," says Berney. "Irish horse people go everywhere, we're still the leaders in the industry, and we have the best National Hunt jockeys in the world." Let's hope that translates into winners at Cheltenham, where it may well be that the extra edge comes from using saddles made in Ireland. Naturally.
www.berneybrossaddles.com. Cheltenham runs Tuesday March 11th to Friday 14th
